Katy Estate Planning Attorney
Protecting Your Legacy in Sugar Land
A little preparation today goes a long way and can protect you and your loved ones well into the future. Through estate planning, you can ensure that your wishes are carried out in the event that you become seriously ill, become incapacitated, or pass away. Though these matters are not particularly pleasant to think about, it is important to be prepared for the future.
Our Katy estate planning attorney at Barker Law Firm PC can help you harness the power of various estate planning tools to position your family for a brighter tomorrow. We can assess your situation, explain your options, recommend which tools are best suited for you, and help you use them effectively.
Learn more about our estate planning services by calling (713) 597-3911 or contacting us online.
Estate Planning Tools
By taking advantage of estate planning tools, you and your family can feel confident that you are set up for success no matter what may come your way.
We handle all aspects of estate planning, including:
- Will drafting
- Powers of attorney
- Advance directives to physicians or family surrogates (also called living wills)
- Appointment of agent for disposal of remains
- Declaration of guardian in advance of need
- Declaration of guardian for minor children
- Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, release
- Testamentary trust for minor children
Powers of Attorney
In addition to a will, some key documents in an estate plan are the powers of attorney. A power of attorney is a document that gives a trusted person the authority to act as your agent to make decisions or conduct transactions on your behalf. There are two basic types of power of attorney: the statutory durable power of attorney and the medical power of attorney (also called a power of attorney for health care).
Statutory Durable Powers of Attorney
The statutory durable power of attorney names a person to act on your behalf in matters of finance, real property, stocks and securities, tax issues, and more — basically anything outside of the realm of healthcare decisions. This document can be drafted to come into effect immediately, which may be useful if you travel a lot and an issue arises that you need your agent to be able to handle for you. The power of attorney can also be drafted to become effective only if you are determined by a physician to be incapacitated. The decision of when the power of attorney should come into effect is one that depends greatly on each person's specific situation. It is important to discuss the pros and cons of either approach with your lawyer.
Medical Powers of Attorney
The medical power of attorney names an agent to make medical decisions for you if you are unable to articulate those decisions for yourself, for example, if you are unconscious. Unlike the statutory durable power of attorney, the power of attorney for healthcare can only become effective if you are incapacitated.
The medical power of attorney cannot be used to make life or death decisions on behalf of the principal. Your agent cannot order the withdrawal of life support or a do-not-resuscitate order for you based on the power of attorney.
Call our Katy estate planning attorney at (713) 597-3911 to request a consultation.
